Fated in shadows

I always knew there was something dark inside me—a twisted part I kept buried deep within. It lurked in the shadows of my mind, waiting for a moment of weakness, a crack in my control. I fought hard to keep it locked away because I refused to let it define me. My mother died giving birth to me. They say childbirth is the closest a woman comes to death, and in her case, it pulled her in. My father did what he could. He tried to love me, or at least show me something close to it. But how much love can a man give the reminder of his betrayal—a bastard child born from an affair that ruined his perfect family? Jacob, my stepbrother, is different. He’s a rare light in the shadows of my life. Sweet, kind, the kind of person who sees good in everyone—even in me. He wouldn’t like me calling him a sweetheart, but that’s what he is. My stepsister, though… she hates me with every fiber of her being. She says I steal the spotlight, that I cast a shadow too big for her to escape. But it’s not my fault people see her as a poor reflection of who I am. Then there’s my stepmother. I suppose she’s a good mother—to her children. To me? I’m nothing more than a scar, a constant reminder of her husband’s betrayal. She never says it out loud, but her eyes speak louder than words. It’s fair, I think. If I were in her shoes, I’d despise me too. At sixteen, I was finally set free. My father gave me just enough to disappear, and I didn’t look back. Spain became my refuge—a place where I could reinvent myself. I went to college, graduated with honors, and became a doctor—a healer, not a killer. Healing people felt like redemption, a chance to cleanse my soul. But no matter how hard I tried to forget, the darkness never left me. A part of me always knew that sometimes, saving someone meant setting them free permanently. Some lives are a burden too heavy to carry, and even death might be a kinder than life burdened with endless pain. My name is Jessica moretti and this is my story a constant battle between the light I strive to spread and the darkness that lingers within